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In the video, “Application of Psychological Research – Clinical Settings,” the importance of psychological research is expressed in detail (Laureate Education, Inc. Executive Producer 2009) . The video covers essential elements that contribute to forensic psychologist decision making and recommendations. For example, Risk assessments have a function to help understand the potential for danger an individual pose to their family or community (Laureate Education, Inc. Executive Producer 2009). The method in accomplishing this is to look at an individual’s historical information such as violent acts, and this variable is a strong predictor for future actions. Various measures have been created to accomplish this such as the Static, Razor, and Sora. Also, when analyzing studies, it is crucial to examine the degree the sample represents the population and how it compares to the community not tested to attain the most accurate results (Laureate Education, Inc. Executive Producer 2009). Last, longitudinal studies are an effective way to achieve accurate information because it follows the population studied over a period and analyze if they present with violence or not in addition to what variables contributed to the outcome (Laureate Education, Inc. Executive Producer 2009).

Risk assessments are a vital component in the clinical setting for forensic professionals. In the article, HCR-20: Assessing Risk for Violence,” developers attempted to create a risk assessment checklist that would help predict the potential for future violent acts (Douglas, Hart, Webster, Belfrage, 2013). This was achieved by developing a 20-item list with three categories. The categories covered risk for violence, clinical variables, and future risk management (Douglas, Hart, Webster, Belfrage, 2013). The HCR-20 is in the development testing stage and more time is needed to make it a more effective risk assessment (Douglas, Hart, Webster, Belfrage, 2013). This instrument utilizes clinical assessment versus actuarial assessment process (Douglas, Hart, Webster, Belfrage, 2013).

Some of the drawbacks with this checklist is that the authors failed to update the area of validity and reliability for the second version (Douglas, Hart, Webster, Belfrage, 2013). Up to date information is vital to attaining accurate analysis. Another takeaway is the difficulty in the rating scale for the different variables (Douglas, Hart, Webster, Belfrage, 2013). If a variable is measuring negative attitude, there must be a way for following examiners to understand what constitutes a negative attitude. To add, the sample was gathered from incarcerated, forensic psychiatric hospitals, and civil psychiatric settings (Douglas, Hart, Webster, Belfrage, 2013). When gathering information from an institutional environment, it excludes individuals that have not been apprehended.

Forensic professionals’ job is to gather historical information regarding violent behavior and attempt to make correlations that would help in future predictions of violent behavior towards family and the community (Litwack, 2001) . This is done by using assessment tools that

Litwack, T. R. (2001). Actuarial versus clinical assessments of dangerousness. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 7(2), 409-443.

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2009). Understanding forensic psychology research: Application of psychological research – Clinical settings. Baltimore: Author.

Douglas, K. S., Hart, S. D., Webster, C. D., & Belfrage, H. (2013). HCR-20 V3: Assessing Risk for Violence. Retrieved from https://search-ebscohost-com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/login.aspx?direct=true&db=mmt&AN=test.8074&site=eds-live&scope=site